Premier Frank Hsieh (
"The government is under a lot of pressure for injecting more money into the project, but it's worth it," Hsieh told reporters after the 15-minute ride. "It would be regrettable to give up on it now."
The train departed from Tainan Station, headed northward to Tainan County's Liouchia (六甲) Township and then south to Dashe (大社) Township in Kaohsiung County before returning to the station.
The Taiwan High-Speed Rail Corp (THSRC), builder of the high-speed rail system, reached its target of running the bullet train at a top speed of 315kph on Oct. 30.
THSRC chairwoman Nita Ing (
"This is a milestone for us," Ing said, adding that her first experience on the train was very good.
Ing said that THSRC will hold a provisional board meeting next week and a shareholder meeting in January -- instead of May -- to discuss the approval of three new board directors representing the government, as required by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications.
THSRC expanded the number of its board directors from 12 to 15 seats last month after the government decided to pump another NT$7.5 billion (US$223 million) into the project. That amount included NT$4.5 billion from the China Aviation Development Foundation and NT$3 billion from China Technical Consultant Inc.
The government currently has two seats in the board but hopes to obtain three more. However, whether the government will be able to occupy the three new seats remains to be negotiated, said Arthur Chiang (江金山), vice president of THSRC's administration division.
The government's holding in THSRC jumped from 11.89 percent to about 37 percent, but 19 percent of that was through purchasing preferred shares, which confer no voting rights, Chiang said.
Ing declined to reveal how much capital the company still needs to complete the project's construction, saying a new fund-raising plan will be released by the middle of the month.
The one-year delay of the project is estimated to cost the company an additional NT$19.3 billion, Chiang said.
Ing announced on Sept. 8 that the firm's board of directors decided to reschedule the opening of the high-speed railway to Oct. 31 next year, blaming delays in the construction of the core mechanical and electrical systems.
THSRC is currently negotiating compensation for the delays with the Taiwan Shinkansen Corp (TSC, 台灣新幹線), contractor for the core system's construction. Yesterday, TSC chairman Takaomi Goto said he hopes the negotiation will be completed by the end of the month.
"I think who should bear the responsibility for the delay is still an open question," Goto told the Taipei Times yesterday.
Becoming familiar with the Japanese-designed bullet train system has taken a lot of time, especially for the THSRC, whose engineers are mostly US and European, Goto said.
Despite the setback in exporting the system for the first time, from a business point of view, the Japanese consortium will still look for other countries in which to introduce the bullet train, Goto added.
The consortium of seven Japanese companies includes Mitsui Corp, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Corp, Marubeni Corp, Sumitomo Corp, Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Toshiba Electric.
As of the end of September, THSRC said it had completed 89.7 percent of the project, according to a company release. The core mechanical and electrical system which THSRC is responsible for is 66 percent completed, while the project's track and station construction are 83 percent and 93.1 percent finished, the release added.
The Tainan station yesterday seemed far from ready to serve customers, with many areas still blocked off.
THSRC plans to test the track in Taoyuan and other areas in the north starting in January, Ing said.
PAPERS, PLEASE: A digital certificate or a printout would return one of three results: green for ‘pass,’ red for ‘not passed’ or yellow for ‘to be determined,’ the CECC said Starting today, people can download a Digital COVID-19 Certificate, with the government now requiring people at night clubs, karaoke bars and other businesses in “eight major special establishment categories” to be fully vaccinated and present a vaccination certificate. The eight categories include dance venues, massage parlors, hostess bars and saunas. Customers and service personnel at the venues have a higher risk of contracting COVID-19, as they can neither avoid contact with people nor strictly observe distancing guidelines, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said. As such, both groups are required to be fully vaccinated, meaning that they must have had at least a
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
LAWMAKERS RALLY: Beijing’s unlegislated actions breach international and WTO trade rules, and affect the basic principles of the EU single market, the letter said A group of 41 EU lawmakers on Tuesday condemned China for its political and economic coercion of Lithuania, and called on leaders of the bloc to demonstrate solidarity with Vilnius. The letter was initiated by Slovakian Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Miriam Lexmann, who is cochair of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. “We, the undersigned members of the European Parliament, resolutely condemn political and economic coercion of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) against Lithuania,” the letter said. The letter addressed European Council President Charles Michel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and
ORDER OF 66 JETS: Delivering the F-16s faster and enabling Taiwan to develop its fleet into one of the biggest in Asia would be based on ‘risk assessment,’ one official said The US is looking for ways to accelerate delivery of Taiwan’s next generation of newly built F-16 jets, US officials said, bolstering the Taiwanese air force’s ability to respond to what Taipei and Washington see as increasing intimidation by the Chinese military. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that they have not yet come up with a solution on how to speed up delivery of Block 70 F-16s, manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corp and equipped with new capabilities. The aircraft are slated to be delivered by the end of 2026. Taipei has privately expressed its wish for a faster delivery
RSS